I glare into my cider. “His name is Kauss.”
Nara studies me over her glass. “Do you like him?”
“I don’t know him.”
“That’s not what I asked.”
I hate old friends. They ask questions with knives hidden in the handles.
“I think he’s lonely,” I say.
Mira’s face does not change much, but her voice gentles. “You are not a shelter for lonely men.”
“I know.”
“Do you?”
“Darlene already gave me the Garrett lecture today.”
“Good. Saves me time.”
I look toward the fogged window. “Kauss is not Garrett.”
“You know that after one window conversation?”
“No. I know Garrett would have wanted applause for saving my door. Kauss looked like being thanked physically pained him.”
“That could mean he’s humble. That could mean he’s damaged. That could mean both. Damaged humble men can still wreck your life if they don’t know how to hold something gentle.”
The truth in that makes my throat feel tight. “I’m not planning a wedding.”
“Great. I hate planning.”
“I just…” I search for the words, but every version sounds naive. “When he looks at people, he expects them to be afraid. When I wasn’t, he looked confused.”
Nara exhales slowly. “Oh, honey.”
“What?”
“That right there. That’s the trapdoor.”
“It’s not a trapdoor.”
“It is. You found the wounded place and now you want to put flowers around it.”
I press my lips together because she is not wrong, exactly, and being known is rude.
After a while, Nara reaches across the table and squeezes my wrist. “I’m not telling you to be cold. I love that you aren’t cold. Halo would be worse without that stubborn, ridiculous heart of yours. But please remember Garrett didn’t just steal jewelry. He humiliated you because he knew you’d blame yourself for trusting him.”
“I did blame myself.”
“I know.”
“I still do sometimes.”
“I know that too.” Mira’s thumb rubs my wrist once before she lets go. “But his theft was his rot, not your kindness. Don’t kill the best part of yourself because some cheap little man treated it like an unlocked door.”
I look down fast, blinking against heat in my eyes. “That was annoyingly beautiful.”
